NSDL/NSTA Web Seminars:

Media Literacy in the 21st Century: WGBH Teachers’ Domain

This Web Seminar, developed in collaboration with the National Science Digital Library,
took place on Wednesday, January 28, 2009 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time.
In this program, presenters
Daniella Quiñones
and
Rusty Low
discussed the resources available in the WGBH Teachers Domain and reliable source
criteria.

Daniella Quiñones, Marketing Coordinator for WGBH Teachers’ Domain introduced factors
in assessing the validity and quality of resources based on criteria of authorship,
publishing body, verifiability, resource provider point of view, timeliness, and
currency. Dr. Rusty Low, Senior Research Associate, University of Colorado, CCB,
INSTAAR provided examples of various online resources examining them under these
criteria to determine if these resources were from reliable sources. Participants
then learned about resources and professional development opportunities through
WBGH Teachers’ Domain and explored Teachers’ Domain materials in the context of
assessing their validity.

Fifty-Five (55) participants were present at the live Web Seminar in addition to
the presenters, the NSDL moderator, and the NSTA staff. Participating educators
represented the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia,
Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New
Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas. One participant
attended the program from the United Kingdom. Participants received a certificate
of participation and a one-year subscription to an NSTA SciGuide for attending the
program and completing the evaluation form.

Here are some comments provided by the participants at the end of the Web Seminar:

“More and more, students and teachers use Internet resources to quickly find
relevant information. The seminar not only reviewed how to evaluate a web site,
but gave a quick overview of Teachers' Domain, a terrific teaching and resource
tool for teachers.”

"I'm very interested in teaching and learning about media literacy. I know students
need assistance with media literacy as well as many teachers."

“Gave me insight into having my students use reputable web sites/resources for
their/my investigations.”

“I use teacher domain a good deal and now have more about it. Also, we have
been considering source verification, etc. and that was very enlightening.”

Thanks to the participants and the presenters for the learning opportunity, the interactions, and a job well done!